I didn't realise she was fired, I thought she chose to leave.
Whichever way, the show has gone downhill since she did.
The powers that be should realise that Julie Chen is not "worthy" of a greater role.

It really is a poor show now.
The Today Show must be hammering it in the ratings.

Turns out, Brian Heidik didn't do such a bang-up job keeping his soft-core porn past a secret from his fellow Survivor: Thailand contestants after all. "I kind of figured it out while I was there," admits ousted tribemate Ken Stafford, who got the big blow-off on last Thursday's show. "I had a conversation with Brian, and he knew people that I also knew — and there would be no other reason why he would know these people."

Sadly, Stafford won't reveal what "friends" he and Heidik have in common — Shannon Tweed, possibly? — but the 30-year-old NYC cop does confess that he "wasn't surprised" to learn that his reality show rival starred in such cable classics as Virgins of Sherwood Forest and The Pleasure Zone. "He's an adult," adds Stafford. "He can do what he chooses to do. If he doesn't have a problem with it, nobody else should."

Actually, Stafford says it was the potential for a Survivor-style backlash that kept him from exposing Heidik's prior employment. "There are some people on the show who are very conservative, and that might have worked against him," he says. "I would never in any way hinder anyone's chances to win the $1 million."

Spoken like one of Big Apple's finest — and if you saw Stafford parading around Koh Tarutao with his shirt off, you know that we do mean finest. In fact, many were dismayed that it was Heidik — and not Mr. Lawman himself — with the adult film experience. A peek into Stafford's mailbox all but confirms this. "Some girl sent pastries to me at the precinct, and when I opened up the box, there were naked pictures of her and dirty undergarments as well," laughs the ex-construction worker, who, believe it or not, didn't respond with a restraining order. "I called her and I thanked her for the kind gesture... She was a very attractive young lady."

Did Stafford share his, um, special treat with his colleagues at the 79th Precinct? "No, I'm a very private person," he says. "That's between her and I. Nobody else has to know about that."